Chess Explained: The Modern Benoni

A new approach to understanding the chess openings
"Reading this book will turn you into a formidable Modern Benoni player with a typical 'never say die' Benoni attitude!" - Munroe Morrison, Open File

The Modern Benoni is a perennial favourite among players looking to create winning chances with Black. It is one of the few openings where White has no easy way to force drawish simplifications or deny Black any dynamic counterplay. Both players need to understand the imbalances in the position and pursue their plans with great vigour. In this book Franco shows how Black can seek to create the kind of mayhem that has attracted champions such as Tal, Kasparov and Topalov to the Benoni, and also demonstrates how White can seek either to put a positional clamp on the game, or else to storm Black's position before his development is complete. A special section deals with the vital question of move-orders.

Chess Explained is a new series of books about chess openings. They are not theoretical works in the traditional sense, but more a series of lessons from a chess expert with extensive over-the-board experience with an opening. You will gain an understanding of the opening and the middlegames to which it leads, enabling you to find the right moves and plans in your own games. It is as if you were sitting at the board with a chess coach answering your questions about the plans for both sides, the ideas behind particular moves, and what specific knowledge you need to have.

• 25 recent and highly instructive games discussed in detail
• Chapter introductions and conclusions emphasize the key points
• Full indexes of games and variations
• Extensive verbal explanations of plans and manoeuvres
• Detailed discussion of move-order options

"For those employing the Modern Benoni, up to around 2100-2200, this is a valuable book, both on a theoretical level and pertaining to overall understanding. White players will also want to read and study this book, as the knowledge you acquire will allow you to play these types of positions with much greater confidence and understanding." - Carsten Hansen, Chess Cafe

Zenon Franco is a grandmaster from Paraguay who now lives in Spain. He is an experienced chess trainer, his most notable former pupil being Paco Vallejo, now one of the world's top grandmasters.

"These books provide 25 well annotated, up to date model games which you can use to guide you when learning the openings. Excellent introduction to these openings for intermediate players." - Paul Dunn, Australian Chess

"Franco provides a comprehensive introduction to the opening, and this is a very useful volume for anyone interested in the opening." - Steve Giddins, British Chess Magazine

"Following on from a previous hat-trick of excellent Gambit books by Paraguay's acclaimed chess author, GM Zenon Franco, the latest new release is Chess Explained: The Modern Benoni. To illustrate and elucidate lots of key ideas behind one of the most exciting known openings, Franco gives extremely detailed and commendably clear notes to many top-level games, almost all of which were played within the last few years." - GM Paul Motwani, The Scotsman